It was a phone booth battle for the first five rounds, and in the sixth, Berchelt knocked down Roman twice. The first knockdown was a crisp right hand that nearly had Roman out for the count. But he got up, and Berchelt applied more pressure, knocking down Roman again as the round ended.
Roman (60-13, 47 KOs) somehow survived, but Berchelt continued to pour it on until referee Jon Schorle called it off with two seconds remaining in the ninth round.
Said Roman: “I feel fine. I gave it 100 percent. I’ll be back.”
Marriaga Knocks Out Estrella in Four
Miguel Marriaga has had three cracks at world title. He is well on his way to a fourth.
Marriaga (27-3, 23 KOs) knocked out Jose Estrella (20-15-1, 14 KOs) with a left hook to the body in the fourth round to stake his claim as a top featherweight contender. Marriaga, a Colombian power puncher, has won two straight fights since defeats in world title bouts against Vasiliy Lomachenko and Oscar Valdez.
“He was a very tough and strong opponent,” Marriaga said. “I know he trained hard for this fight, but I trained harder. In the end, my experience was key in getting the victory. The plan was to attack the body and that’s exactly what I did. I knocked him out with a huge left hook to the body.
“I know that I have what it takes to become a world champion. I want to challenge for another world title!”
Super Featherweight: Robson Conceicao (10-0, 5 KOs), unanimous decision, 8 rounds, Joey Laviolette (9-2, 5 KOs). Scores: 80-72 3X.
Conceicao said: “This is my second bout fighting eight rounds and I felt great. I always train hard and I am always in great physical condition. I feel like I’m prepared to go the 12-round distance. I want to face the best. I’m ready to battle against the champions of the junior lightweight division. I want Tevin Farmer, Miguel Berchelt, Alberto Machado, or Gervonta Davis. I don’t care who it is. I want a title!”
Lightweight: Saul Rodriguez (22-0-1, 16 KOs), TKO 2, 1:57, Claudio Tapia (28-19-4, 13 KOs).
Rodriguez said: “I was anxious and excited to get back in there after such a long time out of the ring. It was a long time coming, but I did what I had to do and got the job done.”
Welterweight: Nicklaus Flaz (6-1, 4 KOs), unanimous decision, 8 rounds, Sagadat Rakhmankul (3-1, 1 KO). Scores: 78-73, 77-73, 76-75.
Super Middleweight: Janibek Alimkhanuly (4-0, 1 KO), split decision, 8 rounds, Vaughn Alexander (12-2, 8 KOs). Scores: 79-73 Alimkhanuly, 77-75 Alexander, 78-74 Alimkhanuly.
Middleweight: Zach Prieto (4-0, 3 KOs), KO 1, :45, Michael Andrews (1-3, 0 KOs).
* Right hand knocked Andrews down for the count